Rowing: USC's DiCianno accomplishes dream achievement

LAFAYETTE HILL — Imagine being a freshman athlete in one of the premier programs in the country, and then helping said program come within a few ticks of the clock of an NCAA gold medal.

Hard to imagine?Well, Darian DiCianno just accomplished such a dream achievement, and she’s still having a difficult time believing it.

DiCianno, just a freshman at the University of Southern California, was part of the Trojans Varsity Four that earned a silver medal in the Grand Final race at the NCAA Rowing Championships over the weekend of May 31.

After leading for better than half the race, the USC Four was edged out by Ohio State, yet held on for a strong second-place finish. That finish helped USC to a program-best, fourth-place overall finish at the event, hosted by Notre Dame at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis.

And while she’s been home for better than a week, the Lafayette Hill resident and Mount Saint Joseph Academy graduate is still shaking her head.

“It took a while to hit me,” DiCianno said. “Then, coming home I remember thinking, ‘I have two NCAA medals (the other was for the USC team finishing fourth).’

“And I think the idea is still hitting me. It’s really satisfying.”

Heading to USC, DiCianno knew what she was getting into, from a competitive standpoint. The Trojans are annually one of the top rowing programs in the country, and high expectations are the norm.

“Going to USC, my personal expectations were high, too,” the freshman said, “both academically and athletically. I had hopes we’d do well.

“To be honest, I didn’t think I’d get second in the NCAAs. But once I got (to the NCAAs), my feeling was that we could really do it.”

DiCianno said the championship event was a head spinner, and she thoroughly enjoyed checking out USC’s competition.

“It was all real serious,” she said, “which was kind of cool. And seeing all the incredible teams out there and some of those great competitors, it was a lot of fun.”

DiCianno also had the support of her parents and her younger brother, who made the drive to Indianapolis.

Ironically, DiCianno said, when it came time to race, the glitz and glamour of the event melted away.

“Once you get on the line, it’s the same as any other race,” she said. “I’ve been in so many big races. And at the end of the day, you just have to go for it.”

DiCianno’s boat rolled through the early qualifying races, the result, she felt of a change made just weeks before the championships.

“Two weeks before, we had changed our stroke,” DiCianno said of the insertion of teammate Katherine Gleadow into the stroke (lead) seat. “Things just weren’t working out. The stroke is the person who sets the tone and the rhythm for the rest of the boat.

“Everyone has a different personality when they row, and (Gleadow) had a more aggressive stroke.”

USC had led the entire way in its victorious semifinal race, and jumped out into the lead in the grand final. But after leading for better than half the race, the Women of Troy were passed by Ohio State.

“We had two great races before (the final),” DiCianno explained. “Ohio State knew we were a little slow in the middle 1,000 (of the 2,000-meter race), they knew our weakness and they took their shot.

“Still, it was a pretty good race, I was satisfied with it.”

In fact, the Varsity Four’s time in the race was a program-record 7:11.03.

Even more satisfying for DiCianno was standing on the medals podium twice in front of her family.

“That was incredible,” the proud national medalist said.

DiCianno returned home directly from the competition, and has spent a few days in relaxation mode.

“I’ve just been going around doing little things around the house,” she said. “Right now I’ve just been running and doing some cardio, keeping it light.

“Then as soon as I get a little relaxation in, I’ll start cross-training and do some rowing here and there.”

DiCianno knows the hard preparation for another season is just around the corner.

“Our expectations were high this year,” she said. “We were hoping to get first (as a team). So we were hoping to do a little better.